06 July 2009

my other home

this past weekend i went to see my host family in sweden that i hadn't seen since i left two years ago. it was amazing to come back and come right back into the family - it didn't feel like two years have passed since at all. in fact, i have a hard time believing that they did.

i got to their house around 7 on friday evening (after some minor train misadventures, in which i discovered that although direct trains from göteborg appear not to run from ørestad station, they actually do). the whole family was there - waiting, with the flag up, to eat dinner. it was so nice to see everyone again, words cannot describe. i was just at home again.

after dinner and lots of conversation, i went with linnea and her boyfriend john to go swimming in the ocean, and who did we meet along the way but my old classmate and friend, harald! he had heard that i was in town. we brought him swimming with us. the water was warm, the sun was just setting, and there was not a jellyfish to be found in the water we were jumping off of the dock into. it was the perfect ending to a fantastic (and long) day.

on saturday i was going to bake with gunilla, but i accidentally slept until 11 and woke up just in time for coffee. sometimes it's nice not to be a student and to have other people feed you and encourage you to sleep in. anyway, after fika we went into town, did some shopping, ate some ice cream, and then went over to my host grandparents' house for a real swedish dinner: meatballs and potatoes, complete with brown sauce, lingon sauce, tomatoes and cucumber, and other veggies. so by four o'clock when i was supposed to go to a potluck at my friend sofia's house, i was stuffed. i had to rest for a bit before making my way over there. all these houses are within walking distance of each other, but still.

sofia's was really nice. there were only a few of us there but it was so nice to see them again, and again, it did not feel at all like two years had passed since i'd seen them. coming back, too, it felt like these people are really my friends, and not just people i know from a year abroad in high school. plus we ate more delicious things, like cake. later we decided to go into the city (göteborg), where we sat outside a pub and just had a couple beers and, essentially, chilled.

all in all, i had a wonderful weekend, and i can't wait to go back and visit again.

four hours on a train is not so long. i spent it watching the countryside change and listening to music.

finally back in göteborg!

håkan, with gunilla, john (linnea's boyfriend), and linnea in the background. they bbq'd for me!

dinner with the whole family, mysigt

fresh swedish strawberries and ice cream for dessert

getskär, where we went swimming

linnea and her boyfriend john

elva kaffe - eleven o'clock coffee, a weekend tradition

fika, one of my favorite things in the world. essentially, coffee, snacks, and just hanging out. gunilla baked kanelbullar (cinnamon rolls) for me! i was going to bake with her but i overslept.

july 4th. they had the flag up for me because i was visiting.

mormor and morfar (grandma and grandpa)

me with my host parents

real swedish food - köttbullar

sofia organized a little get-together

and made a delicious cake, which julia gull is holding.

sofia and julia a.

öl and flowers

centralstation

gunilla, my host mom. more fika!

time to go "home".

heading south

oh, i was just here! the airport.

typically danish.

i'm glad we got so much sun the first couple of weeks i was here, because it's all rainy and gloomy now.